PRESS RELEASE
Assembly
March 11, 2010
Contact: Press Department
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (202) 393-3434
ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY OF AMERICA AND ARMENIAN HYRENIK YOUTH ORGANIZATION
OF UTAH PARTNER
Co-Host February College Dinner Event and Community Issues Briefing
Salt Lake City, UT – The Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly), in
partnership with the Armenian Hyrenik Youth Organization (AHYO) of
Utah, organized a community forum and dinner for Utah Armenian
community members during the weekend of February 20-21. Assembly
Western Region Director Yeghig Keshishian delivered the keynote
address at the Sunday, February 21st, AHYO dinner held at the
University of Utah to celebrate the organization’s one-year
anniversary. Keshishian stressed the importance of being actively
involved in organizations, such as AHYO and the Assembly. As the
leading Armenian young professional organization in Utah, AHYO is
instrumental in galvanizing community support on Armenian issues and
in raising awareness of the Armenian Genocide, both within the
academic setting at the University of Utah and also with a variety of
partner organizations throughout the Salt Lake area.
Keshishian also joined forces with AHYO to discuss ways to broaden the
Armenian community’s reach in Utah by working closely with elected
officials, the local media and in consortium with existing advocacy
organizations sympathetic to Armenian issues to broaden the
community’s reach. Part of AHYO’s mission as an organization is to
promote awareness of contemporary Armenian issues. Following
Keshishian’s presentation on political advocacy and its relevance
vis-à-vis AHYO’s work in Utah, audience members asked questions on how
they could become involved.
"I would like to thank the AHYO Board of Directors for their
invaluable support and, especially, thank Assembly intern alumnus
Natalie Torosyan for her time and commitment in spearheading the local
efforts prior to my visit," stated Keshishian.
On the evening of the 20th, the Assembly held a Community Issues
Briefing at Whitmore Library to specifically address the current
situation of the Protocols and the Armenian Genocide resolution. After
the formal presentation portion, audience members posed a number of
questions relating to the Armenia-Turkey Protocols and the
counterproductive statements made by Turkish officials.
"We have benefitted from the Armenian Assembly’s support since AHYO’s
inception, and it was a pleasure to jointly host a series of events.
We’re grateful that our members and the Armenian community in Utah
were afforded such a well-presented educational experience on critical
Armenian issues," stated Torosyan.
Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest
Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public
understanding and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a
501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.
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NR# 2010-19
Photo Caption L-R: Raffi Shahinian, Karine Sargsian, Ani Megerdichian,
Yeghig Keshishian, Natalie Torosyan, Zaven Sargsian and Greg Parsegov